EU Diplomatic on Anti-Islam Video

Governments across Europe (and elsewhere) have struggled with how best to react to a U.S.-made anti-Islamic video and the violence it has sparked in many Muslim countries.

On the one hand, democratic countries want to stand up for freedom of speech and speak out against violence; on the other hand they want to oppose those who seek to sow hatred and show concern over offensive attacks on religious sensitivities.

The European Union’s foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton this week set herself up for an even trickier task: Graft a statement that not only reflects Europe’s concerns, but also those of the Arab league, the Organization of the Islamic Conference and the African Union.

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Cue some difficult back-and-forth diplomacy. Late Thursday, the four regional groups released a statement that does ”condemn any message of hatred and intolerance” and sympathizes with “the anguish of Muslims at the production of the film insulting Islam.”

But the four organizations also recognized freedom of expression and criticized the violent response to the film. “Offensive speech cannot be met with violent acts as it will only create a spiral of brutality from which we will all suffer,” they said.

Getting there wasn’t easy. The message was the outcome of several days of what one EU diplomat called “intensive” back-and-forth between Brussels and the other organizations. Baroness Ashton’s office initially pushed a draft that went heavy on freedom of speech. She got back an almost entirely rewritten version which focused on the offensiveness of the video.

The full text below is the compromise version. A White House official called it “excellent,” according to the EU diplomat. Others may have preferred a sterner defense of free speech.

Readers’ (non-offensive) views are welcomed…

“As representatives of four regional organizations, we want to send a message today of peace and tolerance.

We share a profound respect for all religions. We are united in our belief in the fundamental importance of religious freedom and tolerance. We condemn any advocacy of religious hatred that constitutes incitement to hostility and violence. While fully recognizing freedom of expression, we believe in the importance of respecting all prophets, regardless of which religion they belong to.

The anguish of Muslims at the production of the film insulting Islam, posting of its trailer on the internet and other similar acts, is shared by all individuals and communities who refuse to allow religion to be used to fuel provocation, confrontation and extremism.

We condemn any message of hatred and intolerance. We know that the behaviour of small groups of people does not speak for the larger communities from which they hail; but the damage they can inflict can be considerable. We must ensure that the recent events do not undermine the relationships of trust and respect we have built up over so many years among our peoples, communities and states. The international community cannot be held hostage to the acts of extremists on either side.

We reiterate our strong commitment to take further measures and to work for an international consensus on tolerance and full respect of religion, including on the basis of UN Human Rights Council resolution 16/18. We further call on all leaders, whether they be political, secular or religious, to promote dialogue and mutual understanding. And we will continue our efforts to show that what joins us together across regions and religions is far greater than what separates us.

The only answer to the darkness of intolerance and ignorance is the light of mutual respect, tolerance and dialogue.”

Comments (5 of 9)

...and recently from the mouth of a religious leader in Libya "Democracy and Islam are not compatible:. This sets the tone of things to come. After all, they have yet to experience (and manage) democracy and free speech.
From our side, perhaps we should inform them when they conduct atrocities, human right violations and other despicable things. How passive must we be?

3:18 pm September 24, 2012

dan wrote:

This group condemned advocacy of religious hatred and messages of hatred and intolerance. I'm still waiting for them to condemn the violence itself.

What a pack of fools.

3:09 am September 24, 2012

true chistian wrote:

IAM A CHRISTIAN.i am proud of muslims bcoz
they fight a lot whenit comes to thier faith.....wow
why dont we fight for our faith too?
and soon iam converting to islam coz i belive their religion is true all those i hear about them is nothing but rumors

2:34 am September 24, 2012

Al Snyder wrote:

Riots against non-Islamic free speech doesn't honor Mohammad or Allah. They only demonstrate innate Islamic violence against non-Islamic views and beliefs. This "religion" is not safe for democracy.

2:52 pm September 22, 2012

Joe wrote:

the muslim world should look at themselves first . i see more unislamic acts done by muslims .before they criticize the west.
i watched on skynews protesters in Pakistan ripping branches off young trees this is unislamic and no condemnation Hippocrates

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The Wall Street Journal’s Brussels blog is produced by the Brussels bureau of The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires. The bureau has been headed since 2009 by Stephen Fidler, who was previously a correspondent and editor for the Financial Times and Reuters. Also posting regularly: Matthew Dalton, Viktoria Dendrinou, Tom Fairless, Naftali Bendavid, Laurence Norman, Gabriele Steinhauser and Valentina Pop.